The Daily Audio Bible
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24 So the work ended until the second year of the reign of King Darius of Persia.
5 1-2 But there were prophets in Jerusalem and Judah at that time—Haggai, and Zechariah (the son of Iddo)—who brought messages from the God of Israel to Zerubbabel (son of Shealtiel) and Jeshua (son of Jozadak), encouraging them to begin building again! So they did and the prophets helped them.
3 But Tattenai, the governor of the lands west of the Euphrates, and Shethar-bozenai, and their companions soon arrived in Jerusalem and demanded, “Who gave you permission to rebuild this Temple and finish these walls?”
4 They also asked for a list of the names of all the men who were working on the Temple. 5 But because the Lord was overseeing the entire situation, our enemies did not force us to stop building, but let us continue while King Darius looked into the matter and returned his decision.
6 Following is the letter which Governors Tattenai and Shethar-bozenai and the other officials sent to King Darius:
7 “To King Darius:
“Greetings!
8 “We wish to inform you that we went to the construction site of the Temple of the great God of Judah. It is being built with huge stones, and timber is being laid in the city walls. The work is going forward with great energy and success. 9 We asked the leaders, ‘Who has given you permission to do this?’ 10 And we demanded their names so that we could notify you. 11 Their answer was, ‘We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth and we are rebuilding the Temple that was constructed here many centuries ago by a great king of Israel. 12 But afterwards our ancestors angered the God of heaven, and he abandoned them and let King Nebuchadnezzar destroy this Temple and exile the people to Babylonia.’
13 “But they insist that King Cyrus of Babylon, during the first year of his reign, issued a decree that the Temple should be rebuilt, 14 and they say King Cyrus returned the gold and silver bowls which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the Temple in Jerusalem and had placed in the temple of Babylon. They say these items were delivered into the safekeeping of a man named Sheshbazzar, whom King Cyrus appointed as governor of Judah. 15 The king instructed him to return the bowls to Jerusalem and to let the Temple of God be built there as before. 16 So Sheshbazzar came and laid the foundations of the Temple at Jerusalem; and the people have been working on it ever since, though it is not yet completed. 17 We request that you search in the royal library of Babylon to discover whether King Cyrus ever made such a decree; and then let us know your pleasure in this matter.”
6 So King Darius issued orders that a search be made in the Babylonian archives, where documents were stored.
2 Eventually the record was found in the palace at Ecbatana, in the province of Media. This is what it said:
3 “In this first year of the reign of King Cyrus, a decree has been sent out concerning the Temple of God at Jerusalem where the Jews offer sacrifices. It is to be rebuilt, and the foundations are to be strongly laid. The height will be ninety feet and the width will be ninety feet. 4 There will be three layers of huge stones in the foundation, topped with a layer of new timber. All expenses will be paid by the king. 5 And the gold and silver bowls, which were taken from the Temple of God by Nebuchadnezzar, shall be taken back to Jerusalem and put into the Temple as they were before.”
6 So King Darius II sent this message[a] to Governor Shethar-bozenai and the other officials west of the Euphrates:
“Do not disturb the construction of the Temple. Let it be rebuilt on its former site, 7 and don’t molest the governor of Judah and the other leaders in their work. 8 Moreover, I decree that you are to pay the full construction costs without delay from my taxes collected in your territory. 9 Give the priests in Jerusalem young bulls, rams, and lambs for burnt offerings to the God of heaven; and give them wheat, wine, salt, and olive oil each day without fail. 10 Then they will be able to offer acceptable sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for me and my sons. 11 Anyone who attempts to change this message in any way shall have the beams pulled from his house and built into a gallows on which he will be hanged;[b] and his house shall be reduced to a pile of rubble. 12 The God who has chosen the city of Jerusalem will destroy any king and any nation that alters this commandment and destroys this Temple. I, Darius, have issued this decree; let it be obeyed with all diligence.”
13 Governors Tattenai and Shethar-bozenai, and their companions complied at once with the command of King Darius.
14 So the Jewish leaders continued in their work, and they were greatly encouraged by the preaching of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah (son of Iddo).
The Temple was finally finished, as had been commanded by God and decreed by Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, the kings of Persia. 15 The completion date was February 18[c] in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius II.
16 The Temple was then dedicated with great joy by the priests, the Levites, and all the people. 17 During the dedication celebration 100 young bulls, 200 rams, and 400 lambs were sacrificed; and twelve male goats were presented as a sin offering for the twelve tribes of Israel. 18 Then the priests and Levites were divided into their various service corps to do the work of God as instructed in the laws of Moses.
19 The Passover was celebrated on the first day of April.[d] 20 For by that time many of the priests and Levites had consecrated themselves. 21-22 And some of the heathen people who had been relocated in Judah turned from their immoral customs and joined the Israelis in worshiping the Lord God. They, with the entire nation, ate the Passover feast and celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days. There was great joy throughout the land because the Lord had caused the king of Assyria to be generous to Israel and to assist in the construction of the Temple.
5 Who am I, and who is Apollos, that we should be the cause of a quarrel? Why, we’re just God’s servants, each of us with certain special abilities, and with our help you believed. 6 My work was to plant the seed in your hearts, and Apollos’ work was to water it, but it was God, not we, who made the garden grow in your hearts. 7 The person who does the planting or watering isn’t very important, but God is important because he is the one who makes things grow. 8 Apollos and I are working as a team, with the same aim, though each of us will be rewarded for his own hard work. 9 We are only God’s coworkers. You are God’s garden, not ours; you are God’s building, not ours.
10 God, in his kindness, has taught me how to be an expert builder. I have laid the foundation and Apollos has built on it. But he who builds on the foundation must be very careful. 11 And no one can ever lay any other real foundation than that one we already have—Jesus Christ. 12 But there are various kinds of materials that can be used to build on that foundation. Some use gold and silver and jewels; and some build with sticks and hay or even straw! 13 There is going to come a time of testing at Christ’s Judgment Day to see what kind of material each builder has used. Everyone’s work will be put through the fire so that all can see whether or not it keeps its value, and what was really accomplished. 14 Then every workman who has built on the foundation with the right materials, and whose work still stands, will get his pay. 15 But if the house he has built burns up, he will have a great loss. He himself will be saved, but like a man escaping through a wall of flames.
16 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the house of God, and that the Spirit of God lives among you in his house? 17 If anyone defiles and spoils God’s home, God will destroy him. For God’s home is holy and clean, and you are that home.
18 Stop fooling yourselves. If you count yourself above average in intelligence, as judged by this world’s standards, you had better put this all aside and be a fool rather than let it hold you back from the true wisdom from above. 19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As it says in the book of Job, God uses man’s own brilliance to trap him; he stumbles over his own “wisdom” and falls. 20 And again, in the book of Psalms, we are told that the Lord knows full well how the human mind reasons and how foolish and futile it is.
21 So don’t be proud of following the wise men of this world.[a] For God has already given you everything you need. 22 He has given you Paul and Apollos and Peter as your helpers. He has given you the whole world to use, and life and even death are your servants. He has given you all of the present and all of the future. All are yours, 23 and you belong to Christ, and Christ is God’s.
29 Praise the Lord, you angels of his; praise his glory and his strength. 2 Praise him for his majestic glory, the glory of his name. Come before him clothed in sacred garments.
3 The voice of the Lord echoes from the clouds. The God of glory thunders through the skies. 4 So powerful is his voice; so full of majesty. 5-6 It breaks down the cedars. It splits the giant trees of Lebanon. It shakes Mount Lebanon and Mount Sirion. They leap and skip before him like young calves! 7 The voice of the Lord thunders through the lightning. 8 It resounds through the deserts and shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. 9 The voice of the Lord spins and topples the mighty oaks.[a] It strips the forests bare. They whirl and sway beneath the blast. But in his Temple all are praising, “Glory, glory to the Lord.”
10 At the Flood the Lord showed his control of all creation. Now he continues to unveil his power. 11 He will give his people strength. He will bless them with peace.
26 A wise king stamps out crime by severe punishment.
27 A man’s conscience[a] is the Lord’s searchlight exposing his hidden motives.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.